Cape Cod and Buzzards Bay Fishing Report 5-10-2012

Fishing Report for Cape Cod and Buzzards Bay

Blitzing Stripers Invade Canal, Bottom Fishing Picks Up

The big tides following the full moon certainly gave the saltwater fishing a shot in the arm this week. Stripers, and good sized ones, invaded Cape Cod waters, bluefish are ravenously feeding on the south side and the bottom fishing couldn’t be better.

No shortage of reports coming from the Cape Cod Canal. Schools of stripers moved through eagerly attacking topwaters and subsurface presentations. Roy Leyva from Riverview Bait and Tackle found excellent action with the Shimano Waxwing. Even when fish refused other offerings, such as topwaters or jigs, the Waxwing’s swaying action drew strikes.

Anglers throwing pencil poppers were treated to good topwater action occasionally, but fishing subsurface lures such as swimmers and jigs drew more strikes.

Roy’s fish ranged up to the mid-20-pound range, which was typical for what was caught through the canal on Wednesday. Mike at M and D’s reports numbers of 20- to 25-pound stripers caught throughout the day Wednesday and the first part of the day on Thursday, though action had tapered off quite when I spoke with Mike Thursday afternoon.

Barry at Red Top Sporting Goods reported the same — plenty of fish, 20 to 30 pounds, with a few north of the 30-pound mark caught. Barry also said the action was waning, along with the super moon and the strong tides.
Schoolie stripers, as small as 12 inches are still around in many of the rivers, but with the word of bigger stripers, many anglers have put their schoolie gear away.

More stripers were caught in Barnstable Harbor, with fish into the 40-inch range. Thick schools of mackerel have been reported outside the harbor. Angler Jeffrey Richardson of the vessel Sandpiper reported catching 300 mackerel at the Barnstable Bell earlier this week, finding the macks 20-40 feet down in 55 feet of water.

South Side action was solid with bluefish according to Barry, and there were some stripers mixed in as well. South Cape Beach was the hot spot. Perennial bluefish favorites like the Ranger and the Line Stretcher Surface Tension are working, as are metal lures like the Crippled Herring.

On the Vineyard, Larry’s Tackle is reporting incredible squidding, and bluefish up island with huge schools of blues off State Beach. Bigger stripers up to 30 pounds are starting to trickle in at night.

On the Outer Cape, the striper action is still in the bays and tidal creeks, where bass are chasing herring.

Bottom fishing is excellent, and with the black sea bass opener this weekend, it should get even better. Anglers targeting stripers have been accidentally catching some mammoth black sea bass in the lower reaches of Buzzards Bay, and starting Saturday, keeping these fish will be an option. Giant schools of plate-sized scup are also abundant in Buzzards Bay.

Blackfish action is slowing down, but Barry blames that on the invasion of the other bottom species, suggesting that the more aggressive scup and sea bass are beating the blackfish to the baits.

Freshwater fishing is holding on. Dan from the Hook Up reported good action for fly-fishermen in Nickerson State Park. A few 5-pound brown trout fell to shiners in one Plymouth Pond this week as well. Largemouth bass fishing continues to be good, and the smallies are shallow and spawning.

Squid fishing picked up on the Vineyard this week, and good reports continue from the lighted docks in Hyannis, Chatham, Falmouth and Woods Hole.

Best Bets for the Weekend

Now that word has gotten out about the good Canal fishing, we can only hope those fish stick around for the weekend anglers. While some of the fish that blitzed through the Canal this week may take up residence in the Big Ditch, as the tides lose their strength and we move toward the quarter moon phase, most of the stripers will move right on through and set up under the mackerel schools in Cape Cod Bay. The good news is that the fishing off the East End of the canal and in Barnstable Harbor by boat or kayak could be on fire. Other Cape Cod Bay hotspots like Billingsgate Shoal will also likely load up with stripers in the coming week.

It will be a great weekend to load up on some fillets for a fish fry. When black sea bass become fair game for the recreational anglers on Saturday, the fishing promises to be lock and load. Small bucktail jigs, tipped with Gulp or squid, or diamond jigs, will be the most fun way to target the sea bass. Scup will hit these offerings too, but the best method for porgies will be squid or clam strips on small hooks. Buzzards Bay will hold the best of the bottom fishing action, but Vineyard Sound will have some as well. Look for live bottom and rocky areas or mussel beds for good sea bass and scup action.

Bluefishing keeps getting better, and while South Cape was the only hotspot mentioned outright in the reports, you can bet that Popponesset, Loop Beach, Oregon Beach and Cotuit all have blues as well.